


A Dream to Travel

by ProfessorDumbleBrows



Series: MakoHaru AU Week [1]
Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Splash Free, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-01
Updated: 2015-09-01
Packaged: 2018-04-18 12:00:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,797
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4705280
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ProfessorDumbleBrows/pseuds/ProfessorDumbleBrows
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Makoto and Haruka have always craved adventure. Where Haruka explored the lands, Makoto stood home. But returning to the town where he came from, Haruka expresses he does not want to travel without Makoto by his side.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Dream to Travel

**Author's Note:**

> MakoHaru AU Week  
> Day 1: Splash Free!
> 
> ...So this was a good idea at first, then it became too long and strayed away from MakoHaru-- I ended up rewriting it and now it's a bit... lacking. Apologies ahead of time if this is a disappointment.

_“Follow me, Haruka!” Makoto chimed as he began climbing the ladder before him._

_Behind him, Haruka frowned. The young boy mentally dismissed the name, tired of a day of correcting his friend, and climbed up the ladder after him. Once the two pre-teens were on the top level, Makoto made a “follow me” gesture and the shorter of the two nodded before doing so. Silence filled the space between them as Makoto lead the way under fallen pieces of wooden planks and draped cloths. The building had been run down, thus Haruka was shocked his easily frightened friend took him to such place to begin with. But the excitement in Makoto’s eyes was enough to convince him not to question._

_“We’re almost there.” Makoto said, voice light as he pulled back a fabric that had looked like a curtain._

_“You’ve been saying that since we left your house.” Haruka responded as he walked past the opening._

_“I mean it this time!” The younger frowned, walking behind the other. “We’re here actually.”_

_“What do you mean?”_

_Makoto smiled and raised his arm, as to bring acknowledgement to the room they were in. “Here! Rin showed me this place a while ago. I thought I should show you…” He said, voice quieting down a bit._

_Haruka raised an eyebrow before looking around. The room was a bit dark, but he managed to make out the finer details nonetheless. Clutter of debris, torn fabric, stacks of books and scrolls, and makeshift chairs surrounded the room. Torn fabric served as curtains to cover openings in walls -- makeshift windows, Haru assumed. He tilted his head, somewhat curious what this place must have been._

_“There are lots of books and scrolls with amazing stories here.” Makoto spoke up again, moving to dig out a candle and match from behind a pile of scrolls. “I considered asking mom if we can sell them in the bazaar, but I kind of want to look through them first.” He smiled as he lit the candle carefully. “Want to read a story with me?”_

_“I don’t really have a choice since you dragged me here, don’t I?”_

_“Don’t make it sound like I brought you here against your will!”_

_Shaking his head, Haruka walked over to one of the piles. His fingers brushed off the dust from some of the covers and he carefully read each title. Finding one with a cover of royal blue and gold designs, he picked it up and turned around. “How about this one?” He asked, curious about what the contents were._

_Makoto looked away from his own pile he was inspecting and blinked. “Oh! Rin read that one. He said he didn’t like it, so I never read it… But if Haru wants to read it, we can read it.”_

_A small nod and Haruka stepped closer before taking a seat on the floor. He set the book down next to him and adjusted his scarf, feeling the cool air of night beginning to slip in from under the curtains. Makoto joined by his side and slid the book in front of them on the floor before opening it to the first page. The page was tanned with age and the spine cracked loudly._

_“We should be careful.” Haruka mumbled._

_“Right… Should I read first or you?”_

_“You can go first.”_

_A hum of acknowledgement and Makoto skimmed the page for a second before he began reading._

**x X x**

Adventure had always been something Haruka craved. He craved the freedom that came with traveling from land to land. It was something nothing could compare to. The labor of work, the responsibility of family -- none of it appealed to the male. Friends, that was something he did miss though. Having to leave behind his friends whom he held close was a sacrifice to his happiness. But it was worth it as he explored the far off lands that he and his childhood best friend had only read about. Lands of sand and greenery. Lands of isolation and despair. He’s seen it all. And yet, there was something missing.

A land of water.

Memories flowed through Haruka’s mind, day in and day out, to the first book he and Makoto ever read. A book of a traveler who came across a land of water. A world that seemed so surreal, Haruka wanted to find it for himself. Despite the endless amount of warnings that it was fiction, a dream, it was a mission he created for himself and prepared himself to leave for as soon as possible.

Years later, however, he decided to come back to his home. A small town that could easily be passed by if one was dehydrated and uninterested enough. Haruka gave his camel a pat, encouraging it to continue walking until they made it into the town. Dry. His throat felt dry and he craved to find something to soothe it. Juice of fruits, nectar, any substance. And with hope in mind, even water.

The town was silent, a feature much different than when he grew up. Where there would be children running through the dirt streets and people pushing their way through the bustling bazaar, the ground seemed empty and barren. Furrowing his eyebrows, he continued guiding his camel along as he made his way to the main market street.

“A customer?” He heard whispered, followed by, “We have but the finest fruit here! Do you wish you purchase any? Of course a traveler as yourself must have the desire for something filling.”

Haruka turned his head and looked at the stand, stopping momentarily in front of it. Looking at the owner of the stand, his shoulders slumped.

“No thank you.” He quietly spoke before continuing on his path.

Many other stands were empty; either empty of owners or empty of goods. He felt his stomach begin to twist with uncertainty. Maybe… things changed more than he thought. Maybe this wasn’t the town he grew up in. The change was far too obvious. His eyes dropped down to the ground as he watched every step he took.

“...It can’t be.” A voice spoke, causing Haruka to stop in his tracks.

Looking up, he blinked at the male in front of him. He had the face of a person he could never forget. Just as Haruka was ready to speak his name, the other beat him to it.

“Haru, is that really you?”

He blinked slowly, registering the event. Then slowly, he brought his hand up to pull away his scarf from his face. Makoto inhaled deeply before taking quick steps forward. Where Haru expected him to embrace him, he felt his arm was grabbed instead. Being yanked, the shorter of the two stumbled before quickening his walking pace to catch up with the male dragging him.

“What are you do--”

“Shh! Don’t say a word. Cover your face again.” Makoto responded, voice hushed.

Confused, Haruka simply covered his face again and continued walking behind the other, glancing back to make sure his camel followed. Questions flooded into his mind about how Makoto has grown, what happened to their town, and what was going on that caused Makoto to become so frantic that very moment. However, he remained silent until they got to their destination.

**~ * ~**

“Why are you back?!” Makoto asked as he set down a tray of fruit on the table.

“Passing by.” Haruka responded simply as he walked back into the room, setting his satchel down by the door.

“You said you were never coming back…”

Haruka sighed as he began to take off his headpiece and scarf. He looked at Makoto with sharp eyes as he spoke his next response, emphasizing the truth in his words, “I just wanted to see how things were around here.”

Looking into his eyes, Makoto saw the other wasn’t lying. Frowning slightly, he said, “Things are… not exactly good around here.”

“What do you mean?”

“You have to get out of here, Haru.” Makoto then said, a serious tone taking over his voice. “You’re wanted. Rin… Rin is still angry after all these years and he’s still after you. I can’t let them see you and take you away.”

Staying silent for a moment, he said, “It’s been years, though.”

“He’s still after you. He’s still framing you for the drought here.”

Furrowing his eyebrows, the raven-haired male tried to think. With what Makoto had told him, he was left with very few options. There was the most obvious one to flee, and then there was…

“I’ll turn myself in to the royal guards.”

“No!”

Taken aback by the sudden exclamation, Haru blinked.

“No…” Makoto repeated. “You’ve been free. You’ve been traveling. I… I can’t just let you turn yourself in. You’ll be held captive -- or worse, you’ll be killed.”

Walking around the table, Makoto then took Haruka’s hands into his own. “Please… Please leave.” he said, voice shaking.

“Not if it hurts you.” Haruka responded, seeing the emotion in Makoto’s face.

Faking a smile, he responded, “I’ll be fine. We’ll run into each other again during a better time.”

Haruka frowned, not liking this conversation and the direction it went in. He wanted to object again, but his words were caught in his throat.

**x X x**

_“No… I won’t leave…” Haruka mumbled in his state of slumber as he slept against Makoto’s arm._

_“Huh?” Makoto glanced over at his friend, raising an eyebrow in question to his mumbling. “Haru…?”_

_“I won’t leave without Makoto…” He continued mumbling._

_Almost immediately, the young brunet felt his face warm up. His heart ached pleasantly at the idea of Haru wanting to bring him along wherever. After reading the book before them, he thought about a chance of traveling to far off lands with him. A small smile crossed his lips before he decided it was time to wake him up._

_Giving a small nudge with his arm, he spoke softly, “Haru, wake up. It’s getting late, we have to leave.”_

_“Ngh…”_

_“Come on.”_

_Waking up slowly, he looked up at Makoto with half lidded eyes. Covering his mouth to yawn, he sat up properly. Makoto blew out the candle and pushed himself up to stand, picking the book up with him before extending his hand to the other boy. Haruka blinked slowly, still going through the process of waking up, and grabbed Makoto’s hand to pull himself up._

_“Haru…?”_

_“Mm…”_

_Hesitantly, he said, “I… I hope we can explore together one day.”_

_Without answering right away, Haruka began walking to the exit of the room, dragging Makoto along by the hand he still held._

_“I won’t travel without you.” He responded after a moment, causing the other to smile brightly behind him._

‘And I won’t travel without you, either!’

 


End file.
